The AFC should press on with their principles, and their day will come sooner or later!

Aug 24, 2011 Letters

Dear Editor,
The AFC party leaders and supporters should not get discouraged by doomsday soothsayers like Cheddi (Joey) Jagan (Jr.) who prophesied in his letter “the writing is on the wall for the AFC” (KN, Aug. 6, 2011).
The AFC leaders have taken the brave and courageous decision to go on their own – a chivalrous move that is to be applauded; it was a judgment to stand on principles, rather than jumping on the bandwagon in pursuit of power.
Don’t you remember the days, Mr. Editor, when Guyanese were clamouring and bellowing for the formation of a party of younger, smarter, principled persons who would challenge the foothold of the PPP and PNC? There were many voices – all over in Guyana, as well as in the diaspora rooting for a party with a difference – a party for a change from the diabolical binary of the PPP and PNC. The AFC is what the people were dying for, and Guyanese should not forget the gestation period that evolved into the formation of this very significant party – a party that has been the focused quibble from the two major parties and those of political commentators.
I can understand Mr. Jagan’s frustration with a government that has been in power for the past 19 years – a government blemished with scandals, and little to show in terms of economic improvement, and doing virtually nothing to stop the spiralling crime rate, etc.
Mr. Jagan conjectured that if the AFC fails to retain their five seats, it would signal the end of the AFC and its leader, Mr. Ramjattan. I trust that the AFC would double its seats but even if they managed to get less than their present five, I do believe that conscientious Guyanese would press on with their principles that would one day see the realization of their dreams for a better Guyana.
The federal NDP party of Canada comes to mind; this has been a ‘third party’ for decades, as Canadians traditionally put either the Conservative or Liberal parties in power. But to a surprise of many, the NDP party – a few months ago – became the official opposition party for the first time in the country! There is a good chance that that party could go on further to form the federal government. The AFC should press on with their principles, and their day will come sooner or later!
As one writer put it recently, the AFC is in a marathon race; it is not a sprint! Though it took off the blocks late, the party managed an incredible five seats. I do think people – especially the younger folk, are fed up with the PPP/PNC options; they want another alternative, I am convinced.
Mr. Jagan surmises the early decimation of the AFC party, should it not join the APNU. I am surprised that a man of his calibre does not realize that if the AFC is part or parcel of either the PNC or the PPP, it would surely signal their categorical end as a party, as that is the very reason why the AFC was birthed – to be a distinct alternative from the PPP and the PNC.
Should the AFC join APNU, and should there be (an improbable) victory for
the APNU party, we can expect at least another two decades of ‘big party’ misrule and abuse as we have had for almost the last 50 years. Then Guyanese again would be yearning, clamouring and shrieking for a party other than the dichotomized PNC/PPP. Guyanese will say, ‘how we long for a few people who are disaffected from these big party politics – people from various ethnic groups and various backgrounds who will take the mantle for the good of the country’.
The leadership of the AFC party Presidential candidate Khemraj Ramjattan and Sheila Holder, Prime Ministerial candidate – as well as former party leader Raphael Trotman is of the type that Guyanese have been longing for. These are leaders who have been disaffected from the PNC and PPP, as well as others of substance – who are willing to put their shoulders to the wheel.
The AFC (Alliance For Change) website is rather impressive, and corroborates that it is indeed a party of substance. I believe that the people of Guyana appreciate that the AFC is a principled party, and would give their vote and support to the party for the good of the country.
Devanand Bhagwan

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The AFC should press on with their principles, and their day will come sooner or later!

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